Bombers post operating profit of $5.1 million after second straight winning season

A winning season and a home playoff game paid off handsomely for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers as the publicly owned team posted an operating profit of $5.1 million in 2017.

It is an increase of $2.3 million over the operating profit of 2016.

“You can see the consistency in what we’re building here,” Bombers president and CEO Wade Miller said in an interview with the Sun. “Sports fans in this province and city are well-educated and can see the growth that the team is having, the steps it’s taking each year.

“Winning helps for sure. We were winning in 2016 as well and we’ve moved the attendance since then. We had three crowds over 30,000 last year, which is fantastic and we hope that continues for this year.”

The Bombers saw a 6% increase in attendance in 2017 as they went 12-6, finished second in the West Division and hosted the Edmonton Eskimos in the West semifinal (a 39-32 loss).

The Bombers average attendance in 2017 was 27,681 compared to 25,935 in 2016.

“One of the biggest trends we saw was 24 hours before the game, people were still buying tickets, so we got the walk-up crowd back in part, which is the first time that has happened since Investors Group Field opened,” Miller said. “That says to me the rapid transit stations helped along with people seeing the improvements in parking and the logistics of getting to the stadium. I think that’s a real positive.”

Adding to the profits for the Bombers were three non-football events — a Guns n’ Roses concert, the Nitro Circus and the closing ceremonies of the Canada Games.

“Our fans are so supportive in attending games and buying the merchandise,” Miller said. “It’s great. Add in a home playoff game and some major events, it’s a very positive year.”

Of course, that $5.1 million profit didn’t last long.

The Bombers used the money immediately to pay $3.5 million to Triple B Stadium, Inc., as part of an agreement to pay off the loan for the building of $210 million Investors Group Field at the University of Manitoba.

They also paid $1.3 million to the City of Winnipeg, an old Winnipeg Enterprises debt that was assigned to the organization in 2005 and was scheduled to be paid in 2017.

The Bombers have also been funding the public transportation program for transit and park and ride services to and from the stadium on game days. The team says it has now paid $3.8 million since 2013 for the services.

Miller said Triple B Stadium Inc., has now formally acknowledged its legal obligation to fund a portion of the public transportation program, retroactive to 2013. The Bombers continue to try to recover the payments due from Triple B.

“We took a step forward with Triple B acknowledging their obligation to that payment this year,” Miller said.

“That’s a work in progress. That’s working with our partners at Triple B and the city and the province. That’s something we look to getting resolved down the road.”

Miller said season ticket sales for this year are hovering right around where they were last year, when the total was believed to be around 21,000.

The former Bombers fullback and special teams ace said the football club has also gone to lengths to enhance the game day experience for fans, adding six viewing decks, occasional live bands at half time and live bands in the pre-game tailgate stage area.

“We got great feedback from our fans on that,” he said. “You’ll see more of that this year.”

The Bombers hope to improve on their 2017 season on the field this year, having re-signed a handful of key players like Chris Randle, Weston Dressler, Moe Leggett and Stanley Bryant, and having brought in free agents like receivers Adarius Bowman and Nic Demski.

Though the organization hasn’t won a Grey Cup since 1990 — a ludicrously long time in a nine-team league — they still had the third highest attendance in the league in 2017, which is really saying something about the loyalty of the fans.

Bombers add three to roster ahead of next week’s mini-camp

With their annual mini-camp just a few days away, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers continued to add to their roster Thursday by signing a pair of quarterbacks, including one with CFL experience.

Alex Ross, who was released by the B.C. Lions on April 12, has four games of CFL experience. He completed five of 12 pass attempts for 82 yards and threw two interceptions for the Lions in 2017.

Ross was signed by the Bombers, along with quarterback Tyler Stewart and defensive back Tyniel Cooper.

The Bombers now have five quarterbacks on the roster, including starter Matt Nichols and backup Darian Durant. The third-string position is open and Ross becomes an immediate front-runner.

The team’s mini-camp, with 45-50 players, including all import rookies and all the team’s quarterbacks, will be held next Tuesday-Thursday (April 24-26). Times and locations have not yet been announced but it is expected to be at Investors Group Field.

Ross (who is 26 and 6-foot-1, 205 pounds) was a star at Coastal Carolina University before trying his luck with the Lions. Stewart (24, 6-foot-4, 220) comes from the University of Nevada, where he started 22 games for the Wolfpack.

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